Which Shopify Functions capabilities need Shopify Plus

The short version: Shopify Functions are not a Plus feature. Custom apps with Functions are. Stores on any plan can install an App Store app that contains a Function. Only Shopify Plus stores can install a custom app that contains one. On top of that rule, a handful of individual capabilities are gated to Plus no matter which kind of app delivers them.

This matters because the question usually arrives late. A merchant describes a rule, a developer starts building it as a custom app, and the plan problem appears at install time. Checking the gate first decides the whole route of the build.

The rule that decides most cases

Shopify’s documentation states it in two sentences. Stores on any plan can use public apps that are distributed through the Shopify App Store and contain Functions. Only stores on a Shopify Plus plan can use custom apps that contain Shopify Function APIs.

So the real question for a store below Plus is not “can we use Functions?” but “is there an App Store app that does what we need?” If one exists, the plan is not the blocker. If the rule is specific to your business and no public app covers it, a custom Function needs Plus, and building your own public app is a much larger commitment than a custom one.

Capabilities that need Plus whichever app you use

These gates sit on the capability itself. An App Store app can contain the code, but the operation only takes effect on a store with the right plan.

A few details behind the table. Payment terms can’t be set when the cart contains items with subscription selling plans, on any plan. The Order Routing Location Rule API is marked beta, and merchants must be enrolled in the Partners program to deploy their own custom apps and location rules. For network access, the overview page names Shopify for enterprises with custom apps for most APIs; the Pickup Point Delivery Option Generator is listed for development stores and Shopify Plus with custom apps, and the Discount API reference lists custom apps on Shopify Plus and Enterprise stores for its fetch target. Check the page for the specific API. Either way, Shopify has to enable network access, and the docs say it isn’t currently available on development stores or in a feature preview.

What works on any plan through an App Store app

Outside the gates above, the Function APIs themselves carry no Plus requirement in Shopify’s reference. Through a public app, a store below Plus can use:

• Discount functions, across product, order and shipping discounts. A store can activate up to 25.
• Delivery Customization to rename, sort or hide delivery options. Up to 25 per store.
• Payment Customization to rename, reorder or hide payment methods (but not payment terms or placement-specific hiding). Up to 25 per store.
• Cart and Checkout Validation to block orders that break a rule. Up to 25 per store. See how validation works.
• Cart Transform to expand or merge lines for bundles. Only one cart transform function per app on each store; if several apps install one, all of them run.
• Fulfillment Constraints, up to 25 per store.

The per-store activation limits apply on every plan, Plus included. If a store already runs many apps that each add a discount or validation function, the limit can become the constraint before the plan does.

Plus gates people confuse with Functions

Two checkout features are often lumped in with Functions but have their own rules. Checkout UI extensions on the information, shipping and payment steps are available only to Shopify Plus stores; on the Thank you and Order status pages they are not restricted to Plus. And the Checkout Branding API is Plus-only, while the checkout editor’s logo, colour and font settings work on the Basic plan and higher. Neither changes what checkout calculates; they change what it shows.

How to decide, in order

1. Write the rule in plain words: which carts, what should change, and why.
2. Check whether it needs one of the Plus-only capabilities in the table. If it does, the plan question is settled.
3. If not, look for an App Store app that implements it. If one fits, the build is configuration, not code, on any plan.
4. If no app fits and the store is on Plus, build a custom app with the Function. If the store is not on Plus, weigh a Plus upgrade against changing the rule to fit an existing app.
5. Count existing active functions of the same type, so the new one stays within the 25-per-store limit.

If the logic used to run as a Shopify Script, the same order applies; the Scripts to Functions map shows which API replaces each script type.

Common requests and where they land

The same requirement can take a different route depending on the plan. These are the requests that most often raise the Plus question:

The last row is the one that surprises people. A Function sees only what its input query asks for, so external data has to be in Shopify before checkout starts, usually in metafields or inventory levels. Keeping that data current is an integration problem rather than a Functions problem; see how to sync inventory from an external system.

Where Lintel fits

Lintel builds custom Shopify Functions for Plus stores, and for stores below Plus we check first whether an existing App Store app already covers the rule, because then neither a custom build nor a plan change is needed. The plan check is the first step of our Shopify Functions work, and larger rules can become a custom app with an admin screen for settings.